The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1887-12-27


| now, andswere as content as could he.
We had had some nice driedSbeef, and most
every day we had peas for dinner, and corn
bread bread and every once in while
| big, old, red, rough fellows that she called
! "nigger killers, and, as there werexlo negroes
there, we wondered if the potatoes had killed
them ALL Annie asked aunt the question one
day, and aunt laughed till she cried, and then
took Annie up and just Rugged her.
but supplies had got short OF late, and
mamma would save the broken bread and
stew it up with q bit of meat for breakfast.
Aunt called this ocoosh," which made us
laugh.
The wi1try days, had come, and the
pine tops hid the sun, and there
/ were only a few little bright spots
where we would go and play and keep warm.
The beef had given out some time ago, for we
were IN the Kitchen when mamma TOUCHDOWN
! the last big marrow bone, andiwe heard her
sigh deeply as she looked back at tho vacant
space. ~
We had not heard from Uncle William in a
long time, and aunt tegana to look troubled
when she would como to our house, and
though she did not look weak and thin like
mamma, she did not laugh as much as she did
at first. 1t did look pretty bad, for
one morning we had to eat bread
and buttermik, which aunt sent us, and
! we did not have any meat to pnt in the dish.
At dinner we had little piece and lots of
/ tuIlllfS, UuL tI SllDpGf mamma SAID Ili9t we
would just eat what was left over from dinner.
When mamma spoke about Christmas we
4 remembered about Santa Claus, and Annie
| sad, Mamma, do Santa.Claus come to Uncle
i Wills house ?''
81 don't know. baby, )" said mamma; 81 hope
! he willV
! knew something was going to happen, for
had seen mamma making two pretty rag dolls
out ,'of some scraps and she hid them
i when came up, and l guessed they
f.were for Christmas, for I was older
! than Annie.
It was Christmas eve, and the evening was
closing cold and dismal. The wind made won
i derful noises among the pines and when the
/ sun went down it was red and just shone lit
1 tie below the dark cloud banks thathad coy-
i cred the skies all day.
just before dark eae "a eur cousins brought
us q hogshead and told us that aunt said she
had two. and that she would send US one, and
that when she got them ready she would send
| MS some Cuttings.
g This will be our turkey, as
the darkeys say" said mamma,
a heap Of wood and keep warm fire, and we
/ will roast some potatoes for our supper, and to-
morrow we Will have a fine dinper."
" Q had panty OF wood. There. was no lack
OF that. It was all around and about the house,
unfortunate II was, for we had to strike fire
with flint and an old file, if it went out, SO
+ We always kept it burning.
4 That nigii5 ne sat by the fire and ate roasted
/ potatoes, and mamma told us stories of how
she had enjoyed Christmas in her
/ old home. She told how our papa and Uncle
| VIII used to play all sorts of tricks. That was
! before Uncle Win came to this place to live,
because he was fond of hunting and fishing
! and liked to raise cattle and hogs.
When we started TO bed Annie said
MAMA, must we hang up our 'tockin's?"
Yes, If you wish,' said mama the tears
! filling her eyes; Must hang up mine?"
/ asked, for L doubted whether Santa Claus
! I IA ysraTr 10 ON l,Syrc
YES, hang them up" and mama dropped
her head and began crying. She cried a great
| deal these days.
Don envy, mama" said Annie, putting her
arms around her neck, "Santa Taus put
/ sumD'n' in 90 tocllin', too
Then mama hung up our stockings and we
| begged her to hang up hers, but she said it had
| hole i'll it, and then Annie got string and
told her to tie itup, and finally, after long per-
! suasion, she agreed.
| Whom we said our prayersImama said: "Ask
the good Lord to send us papa for our Christ
mas, and little Annie lisped out:
'Dood Lo'd. Please put Our papa in mama's
| 'tockin.
| We slept very soundly.
! The wind sighed and moaned among the
trees, and there were no sounds of revelry such
| as were wont TO enliven this lonely country
| during such festive times.
1t was almost daylight when was awaken
| ed by some one calling outside, and at the same
| Ilhle AIinle jumped up ana crled:
ooh, mama. It's runaway niger"
"Hush' said l. sit may be yankee" and
| just then 4 voice at the door said
Let me in, it's Joe, Lizzie"
! ooh, my husband!-Janie! Annie ,-papa's
come, papa's comet" and she was out
bed and at the door, and by the grayish light
could see her hugging great big, old man.
Annie began crying, and l whimpered for
sympathy, but not for long, for this same old
rough, long-whiskered man had hold of us
and was just kissing Us all over.
Wen, VIC soon had a roaring fire, and while
the dawn broke in the east, we sat and dubi-
ously gazed on that ragged man, while he
talked and talked and told. He talked
about being captured, and said
whole lot about parole, and
how he had met Uncle VIII, and how he had
parole, and a lots of things that could not
| understand.
AT last Annie ventured up to him. and as she
sat there on his knee she blinked at him, and
said
Papa, is 90 dot furlough ?"
"Yes, my dear one, I've got long furlough
Sherman is in Savannah by this time and the
war is over"
Well, | have enjoyed many Christmas din
ner since then, but that hogs head and those
Cuttings, and tine turnips and eornbread that
we had on that Christmas day, was the best L
ever partook of,
Ill NVar- ~